[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 34 (Wednesday, March 2, 2016)]
[House]
[Pages H1089-H1090]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       THE NEED TO STAND UP AGAINST ASSAD AND RUSSIAN WAR CRIMES

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Indiana (Mrs. Brooks) for 5 minutes.
  Mrs. BROOKS of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, last week a U.N. panel released 
a deeply troubling report on the grave and horrific atrocities taking 
place across Syria. The report was mandated by the U.N. Human Rights 
Commission to investigate and record all violations of international 
law since March 2011.

[[Page H1090]]

  The report outlines in painstaking detail the mass human rights 
abuses that innocent civilians must endure from both the Russian-backed 
Syrian offensive and terrorist groups like ISIS.
  Hospitals are deliberately targeted--33 in Aleppo alone--resulting in 
mass civilian casualties. In blatant disregard of core human rights 
law, starvation has systematically been used as a weapon of war.
  Over 450,000 people are currently trapped in besieged towns and 
villages in Syria, and thousands are at risk of starving to death.
  Schools and playgrounds and other public spaces are routinely shelled 
to inflict the maximum amount of terror on innocent civilians. The 
report tells of attacks on a girls school in Duma, where 19 civilians 
were killed. Even though there were no military objectives, government 
forces attacked the school twice, the second attack taking place during 
first aid evacuation efforts.
  Last month Secretary Kerry helped negotiate a temporary, 2-week 
cease-fire with Russia that was supposed to end the fighting and allow 
for the delivery of aid to besieged towns.
  Unfortunately, like the deal we struck with Russia on Assad's use of 
chemical weapons, this cease-fire merely locks in the gains achieved by 
the Assad regime and gives Russia outsized influence in shaping the 
future of the Middle East. Regardless, the terms of the agreement were 
almost immediately violated.
  Any hope of a sustained peace was dashed this week with the almost-
immediate and predictable breach of the cease-fire agreement.
  On Sunday, the Syrian opposition released a letter documenting 
violations of the cease-fire agreement by the Assad regime, Russia, and 
Iranian-backed militia, which I will include in the Record.

                                                February 28, 2016.
     H.E. Mr. Ban Ki-moon,
     Secretary-General,
     United Nations, New York.
       Excellency Secretary-General: I regret to inform you that 
     hostilities committed by Russian, Iranian, the Syrian regime, 
     and foreign militias and mercenaries allied to them have 
     continued against the Syrian people despite the truce taking 
     effect on the 27th February 2016.
       Right from the onset of the truce, a large number of 
     violations have been committed by the regime and its allies 
     in several parts of Syria. The regime has continued to target 
     populated areas using helicopter raids to deploy explosive 
     barrels, resulting in a large number of fatalities and 
     causing significant injuries, most of whom were innocent 
     women and children. There were seven recorded incidents of 
     such breach. Furthermore, there have been twenty-four 
     recorded breaches involving artillery shelling and five 
     incidents recording offensive ground operations. Recorded 
     breaches of the truce were registered in twenty-six different 
     areas held by the moderate opposition.
       Moreover, today, Sunday 28th February, Russian fighter jets 
     launched twenty-six air strikes against territory held by 
     opposition groups which have announced and entered into the 
     truce. Disturbingly significant is the fact that cluster 
     bombs as well as thermobaric weapons were deployed, adding to 
     the number of innocent civilian fatalities and horrifying 
     injuries.
       In light of repeated breaches by the regime and its allies 
     since the commencement of the truce, the growing number of 
     fatalities, which currently stands at twenty-nine documented 
     deaths, in addition to the dozens who have been injured as 
     indiscriminate targeting of populated areas continues, we 
     wish to clarify the following:
       It is most unfortunate that the Russian Ministry of Defense 
     presented an erroneous map riddled with false military 
     information (http://youtu.be/MaYvdEidSzsSent) and attributed 
     this map to the United Nations for calculated political and 
     military purposes, as purported areas of political influence 
     and distribution of forces on Syrian territory. The sole 
     purpose of that exercise was to exclude certain areas from 
     the truce and to continue their systematic bombardment and 
     forced displacement. Given the serious consequences of these 
     violations on the Syrian people and on the unity and 
     territorial integrity of Syria, we urge that you take the 
     necessary measures to respond and counter false Russian 
     allegations and put a stop to such practices.
       We call on the United Nations and the Friends of Syria 
     Group to be mandated to specify the territory covered by the 
     truce to prevent hostilities in the designated inclusion 
     zones, such a task must be assumed by an impartial and 
     transparent party. We also note that the absence of clear 
     separation lines will result in the targeting of civilian 
     populated areas by the regime and its allies, and henceforth 
     constitute yet another flagrant violation of Security Council 
     resolutions jeopardizing the truce.
       Although the Syrian opposition groups have demonstrated 
     maximum levels of self-restrain and have thus far continued 
     to adhere to their obligations to the truce, it seems likely 
     that the regime and its allies' persistent crimes against the 
     Syrian people will inevitably undermine international efforts 
     for the continuation of the truce.
       We have agreed to the temporary truce as a response to 
     sincere international efforts aiming to ease the suffering of 
     the Syrian people and to assist in the implementation of the 
     humanitarian provisions of UNSCR 2254, in particular: 
     articles 12, 13 and 14. Failure to achieve any significant 
     progress in this regard will leave us no option but to 
     examine alternative measures to ensure the protection of the 
     Syrian people and bring an end to the crimes committed 
     against them. It is therefore of critical importance for the 
     Security Council to stand firm and unwavering in its resolve.
       The persistent violations of the regime and the forces 
     allied to it will undermine Security Council efforts for a 
     political process, including the most recent, UNSCR 2268. It 
     is abhorrent to pursue a political process through which the 
     suffering of the Syrian people is used as a means to achieve 
     political and military gains; under such circumstances, 
     negotiations will be unfeasible.
       Excellency Secretary-General, the gravity of the situation, 
     and the consequent clear and direct threat to peace and 
     security at a regional and international level, require the 
     United Nations to intervene immediately, to stop the crimes 
     committed against the Syrian people and to preserve the unity 
     and integrity of Syria.
           Yours respectfully,

                                               Dr. Riad Hijab,

                                     Coordinator General, The High
                                           Negotiations Committee.

  Mrs. BROOKS of Indiana. These violations discussed in this letter are 
comprised of barrel and cluster bomb attacks and a number of ground 
incursions against opposition groups who had entered into the truce.
  In the first 2 days alone, there were more than 29 documented deaths, 
mostly of women and children, and dozens of injuries. This is during 
the alleged cease-fire.
  Some believe that this far-off conflict isn't affecting communities 
across America. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to say they are wrong.
  I routinely meet with Syrian Americans in Indiana who share stories 
of the devastation their loved ones are experiencing back in their 
homeland. Listening to them recount the struggles of their families 
reminds me that, if we are to adhere to our values as a Nation, we must 
defend the vulnerable and expand basic human liberty.
  Standing idly by as bombs rain down on hospitals or as Assad uses 
starvation as a method of warfare is an abdication of what we stand for 
as a Nation, but that is exactly what we have done.
  This President's insistence on diminishing American power abroad has 
empowered Putin to step into the leadership vacuum, has bolstered Assad 
in Syria, and has prolonged the conflict.
  We must not succumb to difficulty. We must take a stand and start 
meaningfully engaging our allies and strengthen the moderate Syrian 
forces, like the Kurds on the ground, to fight to replace the Assad 
regime.
  Both my constituents and the Nation's top military advisers know that 
doing so is the only way to bring any long-term stability to Syria.

                          ____________________